The study communities on platforms like Instagram, Tumblr, and Youtube have blown up over the past couple of years, being the second most active community on Tumblr in 2016 and 2017. As stated in the name, these communities consist of students who have a passion for learning, promote education, and encourage others to do so as well. They post pictures of their notes and planners, write in-depth blog posts consisting of tips for others, and push each other to do their best.

The best tips are often found within the studyblr (a combination of the words “study” and “Tumblr”) community, as the platform easily allows for long and wordy posts. Although most advice is given about high school and college, there are also lots of pointers regarding things like job interviews and life tips in general. The studytube (a combination of the words “study” and “YouTube”) community also offers a wide range of suggestions in video form. Creators like Jasmine from ‘studyquill’ and Sareena from ‘studyign’ are iconic representations of study bloggers.

Many members also share other interests, such as bullet journaling and stationery. Often intertwined with other pictures of notes are flat lays with stationery and journals, showing bloggers’ more creative sides.

It is by no means necessary to have fancy stationery to be a part of the community; however recently, there’s been a bit of drama concerning where the roots of the community have gone. It’s become an unspoken stipulation that in order to have such a blog, having a perfectly “aesthetic” life is necessary, even though the community was built on the principle that all people are welcome, as long as they respect others and wish to do well in school. Although many accounts have addressed this problem, the “quota” has yet to revert.

Especially among studygrammers (a combination of the words “study” and “Instagrammer”), company sponsorships have flooded the feeds of many. But a lasting problem remains–although these account owners are receiving free items, they aren’t being paid an amount equal to the worth of their influence. As of January 2018, a group of larger studygrammers (such as @boy.study, @tbhstudying, and @focusign) has collaborated to notify members of the proper ways to deal with monetization.

In summary, the study communities across social media are comprised of high-achieving students who provide a plethora of information useful to other students. If you have a question about something to do with school, it’s a pretty safe bet that someone in the community has dealt with the same thing, so if you’re looking for advice from someone who has had first-hand experience with whatever issue you may want to know more about, don’t be afraid to consult the study community!

Graphic by JOCELYN THAO